More Than A Magazine, A Movement
On June 24, the Supreme Court overturned the longstanding precedents of Roe v. Wade, representing the largest blow to women’s constitutional rights in history. Ms.’s Our Abortion Stories series chronicles readers’ experiences of abortion pre- and post-Roe.
*Share your abortion story by emailing [email protected], and sign the petition.*
The War on Women was in full force under the Trump administration. While the battle may look different today, we are staying vigilant in our goals to dismantle patriarchy at every turn. The fight is far from over. We are watching.
This week: the United States Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade; sexism and racism enter the Jan. 6 Attack hearings; FINA bans transgender women from participating in women’s swimming competitions; and more.
On June 23, members of Congress introduced the Stop Anti-Abortion Disinformation (SAD) Act to crack down on false advertising related to abortion services by “crisis pregnancy centers” (CPCs). CPCs are anti-abortion organizations that masquerade as abortion clinics in order to interfere with access to reproductive healthcare by disseminating inaccurate, misleading and stigmatizing information about abortion and contraception. Despite appearances, most CPCs do not employ licensed medical personnel or provide referrals for birth control or abortion care.
In the House, the lead sponsors of the SAD Act are Reps. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-N.Y.) and Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.), In the Senate, the bill is led by Sens. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). “No one should have to question that the person they are seeking medical advice from is actually a doctor or that information is accurate, objective and complete,” said Maloney.
When Justice Samuel Alito did the final proofreading of his majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, he must have felt a great sense of moral rectitude and satisfaction at the fulfillment of a half-century-long mission.
But he should also have been a bit nervous about the thinness of some of his assertions and the vulnerability of some of his legal analysis. That last reading might have gone something like this.
In overturning Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court justices have signaled that this is not a legal fight anymore but a social war. They are now poised to go after birth control, gay rights, sodomy laws and who knows what else.
Republicans have already told us that if they take control of Congress in the fall—which, unless there is a broad public outcry, they certainly could—one of their first orders of business will be to pass a law making abortion illegal throughout the country. There will be no safe state for a woman.
On Friday, June 24, the United States Supreme Court ended constitutional protections for the right to abortion.
The sweeping decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturns Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey and leaves legal protections at risk for contraception, same-sex marriage and IVF. The decision has allowed abortion bans to go into effect in 18 states.
He’s been called “the father of the abortion movement” by the Los Angeles Times and a “promoter of filth” by Catholic and evangelical conservatives, but as reproductive justice pioneer Bill Baird readies himself for his 90th birthday on June 20th, he is not thinking about his reputation. Instead, he’s as impassioned about attacks on abortion and birth control as he has ever been and remains a fierce critic of those who want to restrict access.
Baird recently spoke to Ms. reporter Eleanor J. Bader about his career as well as the ongoing struggle for reproductive freedom.
The right-wing has been gunning for the gains of the civil rights movement, the women’s movement and the LGBT movement for decades. With Alito’s draft opinion, they have a blueprint for how to roll back these rights. They have now put in place a Supreme Court that is more than willing to carry out the goal of obliterating civil rights for historically marginalized people and solidify white male power. Moreover, Alito’s perspective ignores a long history of Black activism for birth control, abortion and reproductive justice, as well as the long-term alliance between white supremacist and anti-abortion movements. We cannot let them do this.
The basic problem in many fields today, including politics, is the discounting of so-called feminine skills we all count on—but generally fail to acknowledge by anything more than annual flowers and apples. Both nurses and teachers of any gender are paid as little money as possible, and command too few resources for taking care of their tasks. Because they care, this matters.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), as chair of the U.S. House of Representatives Oversight Committee, sent letters to the top insurance companies and their pharmacy benefit managers requesting information on their activities related to birth control coverage as required under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
“I am deeply troubled by reports that health plans and issuers may not be fully complying with the ACA’s requirement to cover contraceptives at no cost, potentially depriving patients access to critically important reproductive health care,” Maloney said.
